The Jeffersonian Era1800-1815

A division emerges

• A conflict took shape in the 1790s between America's first political parties.

• The Federalists, led by Alexander Hamilton, and the Republicans (also called Democratic-Republicans), led by Thomas Jefferson, were the first political parties in the Western world.

• Unlike loose political groupings in the British House of Commons or in the American colonies before the Revolution, both had reasonably consistent and principled platforms, relatively stable popular followings, and continuing organizations.• Platform: Ideals on which political figures stand.

Alexander Hamilton

• Although Alexander Hamilton was never able to muster the popular appeal to stand successfully for elective office, he was far and away the Federalists' main generator of ideology and public policy.

• He laid down and supported principles not only of the public economy, but of effective government.

• Hamilton pointed out that the United States must have credit for industrial development, commercial activity, and the operations of government, and that the government must have the complete faith and support of the people

Thomas Jefferson

• The Republicans, led by Thomas Jefferson, spoke primarily for agricultural interests and values.

• They distrusted bankers, cared little for commerce and manufacturing, and believed that freedom and democracy flourished best in a rural society composed of self-sufficient farmers.

• They felt little need for a strong central government; in fact, they tended to see it as a source of oppression. Thus they favored states' rights.

• They were strongest in the South.

Hamilton vs. Jefferson

Hamilton’s Financial Plan • 1. Create a National Debt

• 2. Take state debts from Revolution.

• 3. Include foreign investors in US manufacturing.

• Create National Bank – A bank for the Federal Government. Hamilton would need congressional approval to

make these changes.

A Compromise

• After significant argument, a compromise had to be reached that pleased both Hamilton and Jefferson.

• The Compromise of 1790 was a compromise between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson/James Madison whereby Hamilton won the decision for the national government to take over and pay the state debts, while Jefferson and Madison obtained the national capital (District of Columbia) for the South

Election of 1800

• Jefferson wins the 1800 election because Hamilton supports him over Aaron Burr, which comes as a surprise, considering Hamilton/Jefferson’s rough past.

• The election of 1800 is the first time people actually are addressed by the candidates• However, candidates did not travel around giving speeches. Instead, they used the

newspapers to help their campaign.• Candidates would write in newspapers or pamphlets and the people would read their views

and vote based on who they felt was the strongest leader.

• The art of political campaigning is introduced.• This is the start of campaigning as we know it today. The candidates knew they had

to get the peoples’ votes to win, so they took to the newspapers to say their peace.

• What does campaigning look like today?

• Jefferson belonged to the party called Democratic-Republicans.• Democratic-Republicans believed in strict interpretation of the Constitution

and the preservation of state’s rights and individual rights.

• His opponent, John Adams, belonged to the Federalist Party• Federalists believed in a loose interpretation of the Constitution and a strong

Central Government

• Both men were running with a fellow Candidate:• Thomas Jefferson ran with Aaron Burr

• John Adams ran with Charles C. Pinckney

• The way the election was set up back then meant that whoever won the most votes would be President, and second place would be Vice President.

• Jefferson and Burr would tie for 73 electoral votes each. This caused a bit of a problem because there was no clear winner between the two for the role of President. • The decision went to the House of Representatives where they would decide based

on the Constitution who was the winner.

• The house would tie time after time in a deadlocked decision.

• The tie breaker came down to Alexander Hamilton – he would choose Jefferson as the victor.

• Jefferson finally won the vote and became President of the United States. • Aaron Burr would be his Vice President. Burr would be bitter that Hamilton chose

Jefferson and not himself.

Burr-Hamilton Duel

• Though Burr was Jefferson’s VP, the two were growing apart politically.

• The Federalist party was seeking to accept Burr into their party as a governor.

• Hamilton campaigned heavily against Burr, to which Burr took as an attack on his character, so he challenged Hamilton to a duel, or an “affair of honor,” as they were known back then.

• Hamilton would be shot by Burr and succumb to his wounds the following day.

Results of the Election of 1800

• 12th Amendment: • The 12th Amendment would be passed.

• The 12th Amendment created a separate ballot for President and Vice President

• Jefferson’s Policies as President:• Jefferson would be part of the Construction of D.C. as the nation’s capital. He

would, during his presidency, oversee the construction of the Capitol Building.

• He believed in a limited national government and strong state’s rights.

• He kept the Federal Bank, even thought it was a Federalist policy.

Marbury vs. Madison

• The Democratic-Republicans had the power over the Executive Branch of the government, but they did not hold power over the Judicial Branch. • The Federalists still had control over the Judicial Branch.

• Before the Federalists lost their power of the Executive Branch, Federalist legislators passed the Judiciary Act of 1801• The Judiciary Act of 1801 created 16 new federal judgeships that President

Adams filled before leaving office. • WHY WOULD ADAMS FILL THESE JUDGESHIPS BEFORE HE LEFT OFFICE?

• Adams had packed the judicial branch with those who he knew would disagree with an opposing president.

• Because this took place so close to the election, many of the required documents were not signed until AFTER Jefferson would take office.

• Jefferson would be understandably angered by this and would refuse to recognize them as valid, since they were propositioned after he took office.

• This would lead to a Supreme Court decision.

• The case of Marbury vs. Madison the decision would help establish the Supreme Court’s power to check the power of other branches of government.

• It established judicial review, which is the power to declare an act of Congress unconstitutional. • This means that Congress cannot pass laws all over the place – the laws they

pass have to fit within the Constitution.

Exploration – the Louisiana Purchase

• By the early 1800, most Americans had settled between the Mississippi River and the Appalachian mountains.

• New Orleans, located at the mouth of the Mississippi, was a very important Port to US trade. • It’s docks were filled with products to be sent to Europe, and many trade

products were also sent up the Mississippi to the North. • Jefferson worried about a foreign power seeing New Orleans as an attractive place to

take over.

• Spain controlled New Orleans and the land west of the Port. Though they owned the land, they found it impossible to keep Americans from setting on their land.

• Spain ultimately would tire of the chore of conflicting with American settlers, so they would trade the land of New Orleans, and all land west of the Mississippi to France.• Jefferson wanted that land for America, so he would send

two men to go to France to negotiate land settlement for the US. • The two men he sent were Robert R. Livingston and

James Monroe.

• During their negotiations, the French foreign minister would offer to sell all of Louisiana to the United States for the low, low price of $15 million dollars (about $235 million dollars today).

• Monroe and Livingston would jump on the deal, and take the news back to Jefferson.

• He was conflicted – on one hand, he loved the US had much more land to work with; on the other, he was troubled by the cost since he used public money. He was also concerned that the Constitution, which he promised to uphold as president, did not mention purchase of foreign land.

• The senate would approve the purchase of the Louisiana Territory on October 20, 1803. • This move would

become known as The Louisiana Purchase.• It would roughly

double the size of the US.

Exploring a New Land

• Since many Americans did not know what lay in store for them in the unexplored West, the President would recruit two explorers to explore the new territory.• Their names were Merriweather Lewis, and William Clark.

• Both would spend weeks studying various plants, animals, and other subjects. They would take notes to take with them on their journey and they tried to prepare the best they could.

• Among their group were 50 frontiersmen. • They called their group “The Corps of Discovery”

• Lewis and Clark would use the Missouri River as their highway through the unknown.

• They had lookouts watch for debris in the water so they wouldn’t sink their ships.

• They would make frequent stops to eat and sleep ashore the banks of the Missouri. • They faced the threat of many mosquitos, bears, cougars, and sleeplessness.

• What they feared most of all was the Natives in which they were sure to make contact with.

• By 1804 the Corps had traveled across 600 miles of land without seeing any native Americans.

• Lewis used interpreters to talk to the leaders of each group of Natives they met. He told the natives that the United States now owned their land.• Was this a dangerous statement to make to natives? Why or why not?

• It was not long until Lewis and Clark would meet the now-famous Sacagawea.• She belonged to the Shoshone tribe from the Rocky Mountains.

• Her husband was a French fur trader.

• She carried with her a son, who travelled with the Corps.

• Keep in mind that she did everything the male explorers did, but with a child on her back. • Truly a remarkable woman!

• Ultimately, Lewis and Clark and the Corps would offer Americans their first look into what awaited them in the Wild Western Frontier.

• It was after their exploration, their communication with natives, and their report of their findings that US Citizens began to move westward past the Mississippi.